This article from last year talked about 3com and Netspeed in one breath which makes it very confusing to read :
(Note : this article is from last year)
"3Com and NetSpeed Inch DSL Products Forward"
By Scott Berinato
September 12, 1997 2:52 PM PDT
PC Week
Will DSL service finally provide enterprises with
T-1-like performance over regular analog phone
lines this fall?
A crop of second-generation digital subscriber
line client and server hardware from 3Com
Corp. and NetSpeed Inc. will attempt to provide
that--but the nonstandard products will face
resistance from regulatory issues and
infrastructure shortcomings.
3Com has updated its entire line of Affinity DSL
equipment, adding support for ATM, network
management and new CPEs (customer
premises equipment). NetSpeed's new
architecture will reinforce DSL security with
support for PPP over ATM.
"The security features are something we really
liked about NetSpeed," said Laith Zalzalah,
manager of network architecture planning for
Telus Communications Corp., in Edmonton,
Alberta. "The one disadvantage so far has been
standardization. We're just not sure what will
happen with interoperability [of CAP
(Carrierless Amplitude Phase) and DMT
(Discrete Multi-Tone)]. Once that is resolved
though, you'll see a huge deployment all over the
world."
Both 3Com's and NetSpeed's architectures are
based on CAP technology, which is considered
less robust than the DMT specification.
Most industry observers cite DMT, the more
expensive of the two, as the technology that will
become a standard.
"CAP has gained acceptance and been the
technology used in most trials," Zalzalah said.
"And we think the technology is overcoming
some of the shortfalls that made DMT more
appealing."
3Com's Affinity line starts with the Affinity LC
DSLAM (DSL access module). The 19-inch
chassis holds 16 four-port AxCell ADSL 7M-bps
modules. The device is managed via SNMP
software, officials of the Santa Clara, Calif.,
company said.
The line includes the Cobra-DSL, an internal
ISA card for PCs that provides individual users
with throughput of up to 2.5M bps, and the
Viper-DSL, which provides bandwidth to 7M
bps and integrates routing for connection of up
to 40 users on a LAN.
The line also includes a POTS (plain old
telephone service) splitter, to give users
simultaneous voice and data capabilities,
officials said.
The LC DSLAM will range in cost from $8,762
to $38,757. The Transcend Affinity Manager will
cost $7,995. Cobra-DSL modems are $283,
while the Viper-DSL router will cost $600.
Pricing for the POTS splitter was not available.
The Affinity products are available now, with
support for ATM coming in October.
Preventing security lapses
Meanwhile, NetSpeed has updated with PPP
support its entire line of asymmetric DSL
equipment, including the LoopRunner DSLAM,
the SpeedRunner 202 and 300 client routers for
businesses, and the HomeRunner 204
residential modem.
NetSpeed's PPP support will help prevent
security lapses, since PPP has built-in
authentication that classic IP cannot support on
its own, said officials of NetSpeed, in Austin,
Texas.
The FireRunner 100, an ATM access server for
service providers, will add security as it takes
the broadband traffic from the central office and
authenticates users at the service provider's
site, said officials.
Available now, NetSpeed's equipment will cost
service providers less than $500 per line,
according to officials.
3Com can be reached at (408) 764-5000 or
www.3com.com. NetSpeed can be found at
(800) 550-2375 or www.netspeed.com.
www5.zdnet.com
Mang |
